Rio Games Kick Off This Week: Meet the 30 Olympic Athletes With Ties to New York

Every U.S. athlete heading to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in the coming weeks has a story to tell, and the athletes who hail from New York are no different.

The 17 days of Olympic competition will take place from Aug. 5-21. More than 10,500 athletes from 206 nations (and an international team of refugees) are expected to participate in 28 sports, including the highly anticipated reinstatement of golf and rugby.

Three in particular are worth adding to the list of folks you'll be rooting for:

• Ryan Carlyle is on the women's rugby team. Her hometown is West Nyack.

A graduate of Clarkstown High School South, Class of ‘07, Carlyle is the daughter of Keith and Annmarie Carlyle. She has one brother, Matthew, and one sister, Taylor.

Here's her profile from USA Rugby: Played softball, indoor track, basketball, and soccer in high school...Recognized as All-County and All-Region in all four years years, also recognized as All-American softball shortstop...Played Softball at University of South Carolina...Played competitive club soccer...Competed as a body builder and figure competitor in 2007, received amateur card through National Physique Committee in 2008...Qualified for a national pro competition in 2010 after placing second at regionals...Played club rugby in Columbia, SC...Recognized as an All-American and invited to first national elite trials camp in January 2010...Invited to first tour to Honk Kong 7s in 2011 and has been to every camp since...Took a semester off from law school in 2011 to play with the San Diego Surfers in the Women's Premier League and train with the Eagles part-time...The Surfers won the 7s National Championship and placed 5th in the WPL...Began training with the Eagles full-time in late 2012 and became a resident in 2013...Won bronze at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2013...Was named to Team USA's 12-player Rugby Sevens squad for the Rio 2016 Olympic Summer Games.

• Melissa Gonzalez from Mohegan Lake is on the Field Hockey team.

A graduate of Lakeland High School, she is the daughter of Felix and Yolanda Gonzalez.

Her profile on Team USA says: The former University of Connecticut field hockey star earned her pivotal spot on the National Team in 2010. Gonzalez verified her importance at the 2011 Pan American Games by being a part of an outcome that made USA Field Hockey history. Gonzalez made her first Olympic Games appearance in the London 2012 Games and was a part of the 2014 Rabobank Hockey World Cup squad that impressed the world with a fourth place finish.

• Brewster resident McLain Ward is on the Equestrian team.

A member of the Gold Medal equestrian teams in Athens and in Beijing, this is Ward's fourth Olympics. He lives in Brewster with his wife Lauren and daughter Lilly. "There are not many major competitions left in the world that Ward has not won," Spruce Meadows Media Services reported in 2015.

And keep an eye out for Deajah Stevens, whose mom and sister, Sleepy Hollow residents, have a GoFundMe page to get themselves into the stands.

Here's the whole list of New Yorkers on Team USA:

• Carmelo Anthony, New York N.Y. Basketball -Forward
• Sue Bird, Syosset N.Y. Basketball -Guard
• Anita Alvarez, Buffalo N.Y. Synchro -Duet/Team
• Matt Anderson, West Seneca N.Y. Indoor Volleyball -Outside Hitter
• Ryan Carlyle, West Nyack N.Y. Rugby -Hooker
• Miles Chamley-Watson, New York N.Y. Fencing -Foil
• Tina Charles, Queens N.Y. Basketball -Center
• Crystal Dunn, Rockville Centre N.Y. Soccer -Midfield
• Melissa Gonzalez, Mohegan Lake N.Y. Field Hockey -Midfielder
• Megan Guarnier, Glens Falls N.Y. Cycling -Road Race
• Natasha Hastings, Queens N.Y. Track and Field -400m, 4x400m
• Daryl Homer, Bronx N.Y. Fencing -Saber
• Molly Huddle, Elmira N.Y. Track and Field -10,000m
• Alisa Kano, New York N.Y. Gymnastics -Rhythmic group
• Allie Long, Northport N.Y. Soccer -Midfield
• Beezie Madden, Cazenovia N.Y. Equestrian -Jumping
• Miranda Melville, Rochester N.Y. Track and Field -20K Race Walk
• Maria Michta-Coffey, Nesconset N.Y. Track and Field -20K Race Walk
• Dalilah Muhammad, Jamaica N.Y. Track and Field -400m Hurdles
• Meghan Musnicki, Naples N.Y. Rowing -Women's Eight
• Lia Neal, Brooklyn N.Y. Swimming -4x100m Free
• Nzingha Prescod, Brooklyn N.Y. Fencing -Foil
• Emily Regan, Buffalo N.Y. Rowing -Women's Eight
• Henrik Rummel, Pittsford N.Y. Rowing -Men's Four
• Kristen Shaldybin, Brooklyn N.Y. Gymnastics -Rhythmic group
• Deajah Stevens, Bayside N.Y. Track and Field -200m
• Breanna Stewart, North Syracuse N.Y. Basketball -Forward/Center
• Jenn Suhr, Fredonia N.Y. Track and Field -Pole Vault
• McLain Ward, Brewster N.Y. Equestrian -Jumping
• Rudy Winkler, Ithaca N.Y. Track and Field -Hammer Throw

Keep up with Team USA on the website.

And just FYI, 10 athletes will compete for the Refugee Olympic Team – the first of its kind – and march under the Olympic flag before host nation Brazil in the Opening Ceremony. The groundbreaking ROT is comprised of athletes from four nations – Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan and Syria – and competing in judo, swimming, and track and field.

For more information on the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, visit Rio2016.com.

Photos from Team USA website